Apple ... won a patent for its iPad design concept, which includes a rectangular shape with rounded corners.

The patent — called "Portable Display Device" — includes Steve Jobs among its inventors and was filed in November 2010, six months after Apple launched its first-generation iPad. It was approved on Tuesday by the US Patent and Trademark Office.

The image, which was modelled on the first iPad, shows the tablet's signature curved corners. The patent has five total images that show the design from various angles.

In theory, the patent will prevent rivals and counterfeit makers from using Apple's design and could be used against them in court. But it's uncertain if the patent could be used in Apple's ongoing lawsuits against Samsung for allegedly copying its tablet design.

Although Samsung was found guilty of infringement related to 28 devices, many of which are no longer sold in the US, Apple said in a filing that it "has tailored this list to address a portion of the immediate, ongoing, irreparable harm that Apple is suffering."

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